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Why carbon capture and storage will not solve the climate crisis any time soon 2023-08-01 - The promises of carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology date back almost 20 years. Yet today, no leading CCS facility is up and fully running in the UK. Until Rishi Sunak’s announcement on Monday, there were two carbon capture projects in the UK, one in Merseyside and the other in Teesside and the Humber. Two further transport and storage projects, the Viking scheme in the Humber and the Acorn scheme in Aberdeenshire, have now been given government approval. The four CCS hubs are intended to collect CO 2 from multiple sources and pipe it offshore to be stored in depleting North Sea gas fields. But, according to Stuart Haszeldine, professor of carbon capture and storage at the University of Edinburgh, announcing more CCS schemes at the same time as approving 100-plus new oil and gas drilling licences is like ordering a truckload of cigarettes for someone giving up smoking. Haszeldine said: “That’s what yesterday’s announcement was doing. CCS should be part of a package of things that you have to do – increasing renewables to switch our energy from burning gas and oil, doubling or even quadrupling the amount of electricity we have now, building in more efficiency in how we use our energy with insulation. It should be part of this package.” CCS involves capturing carbon dioxide from industrial facilities, such as chemical plants and oil refineries, then transporting and storing it. The UK’s geology is suitable for storing carbon, and empty oilfields in the North Sea have been selected for storage. CCS is intended to be used in the transition to net zero to capture carbon from industries that will be harder to decarbonise, including cement, iron and steel, according to Haszeldine. He said: “In these industries, CCS can help and will be essential to get to net zero.” A second nascent industry in capturing CO 2 from the atmosphere is less developed than CCS linked to industrial facilities. The process of removing CO 2 from the atmosphere is known as negative emissions. Jim Watson, professor of energy policy and director of the Institute for Sustainable Resources at University College London, said he understood the scepticism of some environmentalists about CCS because it could be viewed as “get out of jail free” card for oil and gas companies to continue getting fossil fuels out of the ground. Watson said: “But we do need it. If you look at independent assessments, including from the climate change committee, it is hard to see how to decarbonise the whole of industry without some carbon capture and storage.” The history of CCS in the UK is chequered. One of the first CCS strategies was in 2006, and there have been many false starts over the years. Even today, some projects already operating around the world have not been as successful as planned. In Australia, the CCS project run by Chevron has not yet made its Gorgon project meet its target of 80% carbon dioxide capture. A recent report from the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) on two Norwegian projects that store carbon dioxide under the seabed called into question the long-term viability of CCS. Its author, Grant Hauber, IEEFA’s strategic energy finance adviser, said the Norwegian Sleipner and Snøhvit CCS fields have been cited as global success stories, but because of the unpredictability of the subsurface conditions they cannot be used as definitive models for the future of the industry. Hauber said: “Every project site has unique geology. Subsurface conditions which exist at a given point on the Earth are specific to that place. Even then, any information obtained about that place is only a snapshot in time. The Earth moves and strata can change.” There is also a need to make sure the CO 2 is stored in the ground permanently rather than allowing fossil fuel companies to use it to drill for more oil and gas elsewhere. This requires regulation and monitoring, said Watson. The timeframe for CCS is tight. The UK target is to raise the amount of CO 2 captured from zero today to between 20m and 30m tonnes by 2030. Watson said: “There are still big questions about whether it can deliver the kind of numbers of storage that we need by this time.”
Turns out there’s another problem with AI – its environmental toll 2023-08-01 - Technology never exists in a vacuum, and the rise of cryptocurrency in the last two or three years shows that. While plenty of people were making extraordinary amounts of money from investing in bitcoin and its competitors, there was consternation about the impact those get-rich-quick speculators had on the environment. Mining cryptocurrency was environmentally taxing. The core principle behind it was that you had to expend effort to get rich. To mint a bitcoin or another cryptocurrency, you had to first “mine” it. Your computer would be tasked with completing complicated equations that, if successfully done, could create a new entry on to the blockchain. People began working on an industrial scale, snapping up the high-powered computer chips, called GPUs (graphics processing units), that could mine for crypto faster than your off-the-shelf computer components at such pace that Goldman Sachs estimated 169 industries were affected by the 2022 chip shortage. And those computer chips required more electricity to power them; bitcoin mining alone uses more electricity than Norway and Ukraine combined. The environmental cost of the crypto craze is still being tallied – including by the Guardian this April. The AI environmental footprint A booming part of tech – which uses the exact same GPUs as intensely, if not moreso, than crypto mining – has got away with comparatively little scrutiny of its environmental impact. We are, of course, talking about the AI revolution. Generative AI tools are powered by GPUs, which are complex computer chips able to handle the billions of calculations a second required to power the likes of ChatGPT and Google Bard. (Google uses its own similar technology, called tensor processing units, or TPUs.) There should be more conversation about the environmental impact of AI, says Sasha Luccioni, a researcher in ethical and sustainable AI at Hugging Face, which has become the de facto conscience of the AI industry. (Meta recently released its Llama 2 open-source large language model through Hugging Face.) “Fundamentally speaking, if you do want to save the planet with AI, you have to consider also the environmental footprint [of AI first],” she says. “It doesn’t make sense to burn a forest and then use AI to track deforestation.” Counting the carbon cost Luccioni is one of a number of researchers trying – with difficulty – to quantify AI’s environmental impact. It’s difficult for a number of reasons, among them that the companies behind the most popular tools, as well as the companies selling the chips that power them, aren’t very willing to share details of how much energy their systems use. There’s also an intangibility to AI that stymies proper accounting of its environmental footprint. “I think AI is not part of these pledges or initiatives, because people think it’s not material, somehow,” she says. “You can think of a computer or something that has a physical form, but AI is so ephemeral. Even for companies trying to make efforts, I don’t typically see AI on the radar.” That ephemerality also exists for end users. We know that we’re causing harm to the planet when we turn on our cars because we can see or smell the fumes coming out of the exhaust after we turn the key. With AI, you can’t see the cloud-based servers being queried, or the chips rifling through their memory to complete the processing tasks asked of it. For many, the huge volumes of water coursing through pipes inside data centres, deployed to keep the computers powering the AI tools cool, are invisible. You just type in your query, wait a few seconds, then get a response. Where’s the harm in that? Putting numbers to the problem Let’s start with the water use. Training GPT-3 used by 3.5m litres of water through datacentre usage, according to one academic study, and that’s provided it used more efficient US datacentres. If it was trained on Microsoft’s datacentres in Asia, the water usage balloons to closer to 5m litres. Prior to the integration of GPT-4 into ChatGPT, researchers estimated that the generative AI chatbot would use up 500ml of water – a standard-sized water bottle – every 20 questions and corresponding answers. And ChatGPT was only likely to get thirstier with the release of GPT-4, the researchers forecast. skip past newsletter promotion Sign up to TechScape Free weekly newsletter Alex Hern's weekly dive in to how technology is shaping our lives Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy . We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. after newsletter promotion Estimating energy use, and the resulting carbon footprint, is trickier. One third-party analysis by researchers estimated that training of GPT-3, a predecessor of ChatGPT, consumed 1,287 MWh, and led to emissions of more than 550 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent, similar to flying between New York and San Francisco on a return journey 550 times. Reporting suggests GPT-4 is trained on around 570 times more parameters than GPT-3. That doesn’t mean it uses 570 times more energy, of course – things get more efficient – but it does suggest that things are getting more energy intensive, not less. For better or for worse Tech boffins are trying to find ways to maintain AI’s intelligence without the huge energy use. But it’s difficult. One recent study, published earlier this month, suggests that many of the workarounds already tabled end up trading off performance for environmental good. It leaves the AI sector in an unenviable position. Users are already antsy about what they see as a worsening performance of generative AI tools like ChatGPT (whether that’s just down to their perception or based in reality isn’t yet certain). Sacrificing performance to reduce ecological impact seems unlikely. But we need to rethink AI’s use – and fast. Technology analysts Gartner believe that by 2025, unless a radical rethink takes place in how we develop AI systems to better account for their environmental impact, the energy consumption of AI tools will be greater than that of the entire human workforce. By 2030, machine learning training and data storage could account for 3.5% of all global electricity consumption. Pre-AI revolution, datacentres used up 1% of all the world’s electricity demand in any given year. So what should we do? Treating AI more like cryptocurrency – with an increased awareness of its harmful environmental impacts, alongside awe at its seemingly magical powers of deduction – would be a start. The wider TechScape
'Oh the irony': Rishi Sunak heckled pulling a pint – video 2023-08-01 - Rishi Sunak was heckled while pouring a pint at the Great British beer festival in west London on Monday, the day before a blanket alcohol duty freeze ended. Footage showed the prime minister filling a pint glass of Black Dub as Rudi Keyser, 46, loudly yelled: 'Prime minister, oh the irony that you're raising alcohol duty on the day that you're pulling a pint'
Why is Hollywood on strike (and why Succession’s Brian Cox is joining them)? - podcast 2023-08-01 - Production on Hollywood films and hit TV shows has ground to a halt because of the Sag-Aftra strike. Apart from the stars on the picket line, how is this strike different from other labour disputes? Michael Safi speaks to Lois Beckett, a senior reporter with Guardian US, and Brian Cox, who played media boss Logan Roy in the TV series Succession, on why writers and actors can no longer make a living How to listen to podcasts: everything you need to know
Meta to end news access in Canada over publisher payment law 2023-08-01 - Meta has begun the process to end access to news on Facebook and Instagram for all users in Canada, the company said on Tuesday. The move comes in response to legislation in the country requiring internet giants to pay news publishers. Meta’s communications director, Andy Stone, said the changes will roll out in the coming weeks. Canada’s heritage minister, Pascale St-Onge, who is in charge of the government’s dealings with Meta, called the move irresponsible. “[Meta] would rather block their users from accessing good quality and local news instead of paying their fair share to news organizations,” St-Onge said in a statement on Tuesday. “We’re going to keep standing our ground. After all, if the government can’t stand up for Canadians against tech giants, who will?” Canada’s public broadcast CBC also called Meta’s move irresponsible and said that it was “an abuse of their market power”. The Online News Act, passed by the Canadian parliament, would force platforms like Google’s parent company, Alphabet, and Meta to negotiate commercial deals with Canadian news publishers for their content. The legislation is part of a broader global trend of governments trying to make tech firms pay for news. Canada’s legislation is similar to a ground-breaking law that Australia passed in 2021 and had triggered threats from Google and Facebook to curtail their services. Both the companies eventually struck deals with Australian media firms after amendments to the legislation were offered. In the US, the state of California has also considered a similar law. In that case, too, Meta has threatened to withdraw services from the state if the legislation goes through. On the Canadian law, Google has argued that it is broader than those enacted in Australia and Europe as it puts a price on news story links displayed in search results and can apply to outlets that do not produce news. Meta had said links to news articles make up less than 3% of the content on its users’ feed and argued that news lacked economic value. Canada’s prime minister, Justin Trudeau, had said in May that such an argument was flawed and “dangerous to our democracy, to our economy”.
Sellers boycott Etsy UK over hike in sales income held back on reserve 2023-08-01 - Etsy UK sellers have boycotted the online craft marketplace after it increased the amount of sales income it holds back from some vendors to ensure items are delivered as promised. The UK’s small business commissioner, Liz Barclay, said she had contacted the site about a fortnight ago after an increase in complaints by sellers who had suddenly had as much as 75% of their takings held back for at least 45 days. Etsy’s fees, which include a sales commission and advertising costs, are taken out of the remaining 25%, meaning many small businesses have little cashflow left to pay themselves or suppliers. Barclay said one seller who had got in touch was receiving only 60p for every £43.99 item sold, making it difficult for them to continue trading. Anger at the changes has led to calls to boycott the site, with vendors putting their Etsy page on “holiday mode” or switching to rival platforms. A furniture seller who posted on the Facebook group Etsy Reserve Strike said they had had funds held back with “no warning, no explanation and no possibility of them engaging in any dialogue about it. They’ve kept several thousand pounds of my money, so I’ve had to borrow money to keep going. It’s shockingly bad.” Alternative handmade goods websites, such as The British Craft House and Folksy, said they had experienced an increase in new signups as sellers looked for another way to advertise their wares. Folksy said signups had increased by 289% overnight after an article about the problems with Etsy appeared on the BBC website, which first reported the row. However, these online marketplaces are relative minnows compared with Etsy, making it harder for sellers to make enough sales. Alex Tutusaus, who sells 3D-printed replicas, said Etsy had long applied reserve measures to new accounts but from about the end of May had begun applying them much more widely without explanation. “The main issue here is Etsy’s lack of total transparency. An AI-driven ‘chat support’ in the best case forwards your inquiry to a ‘second level’ support team that just pastes canned responses over and over with things that most of the time do not apply to most of the sellers being affected,” Tutusaus said, adding that he was planning to start selling to customers directly through Shopify. Barclay said Etsy had promised to set up a new contact line for struggling sellers in the UK but that it was not clear how long this would take. She said she had no legal powers to force Etsy to take action as it was not a UK business and sellers had signed contracts with the US-based firm. “More and more people are in danger of not being able to carry on trading, and for a lot of people this is their main source of income,” she said. “A lot of small businesses are run by women, or ethnic or neurodiverse minorities or those with disabilities. We are concerned that sections of the community will be particularly badly hit by this. “I’m desperately worried that while Etsy is deciding how to address this, there will be businesses that go bust and people’s livelihoods destroyed.” skip past newsletter promotion Sign up to Business Today Free daily newsletter Get set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy . We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. after newsletter promotion Etsy has told sellers it can apply a reserve system to their account if they are a new shop, if there is a sharp increase in orders or refunds, or if orders are consistently missing tracking information or not shipped on time. However, some star sellers who always track their shipments have still been hit with a reserve. Etsy said that on average, funds held on reserve from most orders became available within two weeks of the order date, and fewer than 2% of active sellers had a reserve on their account at present. It added that for 70% of those sellers the funds on hold were worth less than $70 (£55). A spokesperson said: “Etsy has long provided sellers with a generous payment schedule – the vast majority of sellers receive their funds when they make a sale rather than having to wait until the buyer receives the item, like they might with other selling platforms. “In some cases, we will delay a portion of funds from a sale until we can confirm that the order has shipped. This enables us to continue paying sellers in a timely manner while taking the steps necessary to help keep our marketplace safe and protect our customers when there are unexpected issues with their order. “As always, we will continue to iterate and improve upon our programmes, including payment reserves, in order to support our sellers.”
Sarah Breeden to be deputy governor of Bank of England 2023-08-01 - The Bank of England is on course to have the largest ever number of women on its interest rates setting committee after Jeremy Hunt said the Bank of England insider Sarah Breeden would become the deputy governor for financial stability at the central bank in November. Breeden will take up positions on the rate-setting monetary policy committee (MPC) and financial policy committee, which she will chair in the absence of the Bank’s governor, Andrew Bailey. She will be the first internal appointment of a woman as deputy governor since Charlotte Hogg assumed the role in 2017, only to resign two weeks into the role. Hogg left when MPs concluded she was not up to the role after she failed to disclose that her brother works for Barclays, which is regulated by the Bank of England. Taking over from Sir Jon Cunliffe, who retires after a career in Whitehall and the Bank, Breeden has worked her way up through the organisation’s byzantine management structures over the last 30 years, starting in 1991 as assistant private secretary to the governor. In her role, she will be in charge of the Bank’s cryptocurrency policy and broader concerns about the stability of the banking and financial sector, working with the head of the Prudential Regulation Authority, Sam Woods, another Threadneedle Street staffer. Breeden created and co-chaired the Bank’s women’s network for eight years and is an executive sponsor of the Bank’s LGBTQ+ network. The Cambridge University graduate will join three other women on the nine-member MPC – Swati Dhingra, Catherine Mann and Megan Greene – though they are all outside appointments from academia or jobs in the City. Not since the monetary policy committee’s creation in 1997, following the move to make the Bank of England independent from the Treasury, have there been as many as four women deciding UK interest rate policy. skip past newsletter promotion Sign up to Business Today Free daily newsletter Get set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy . We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. after newsletter promotion Bailey said: “Sarah will bring a wealth of financial and economic policy knowledge to the role, both domestically and internationally.”
Trump's Jan. 6 indictment has been unsealed. Read the 4 charges brought by the DOJ. 2023-08-01 - Donald Trump was indicted — again. This time, it's over his efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election results. Read a copy of the indictment document below: Get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in business, from Wall Street to Silicon Valley — delivered daily. Loading Something is loading. Thanks for signing up! Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. download the app Email address By clicking ‘Sign up’, you agree to receive marketing emails from Insider as well as other partner offers and accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy Justice Department prosecutors brought another indictment against former President Donald Trump — this time for his efforts to overturn the 2020 election results. The Washington, DC, grand jury indictment alleges Trump broke laws by attempting to obstruct Congress when he organized efforts to stop them from certifying now-President Joe Biden's electoral win. Trump has denied the reality that he lost the 2020 election. The DC-based grand jury has been examining Republican plots to send "fake electors" from swing states he lost, maneuvers to stop Biden from becoming president, and the events leading up to the January 6, 2021, riot at the Capitol where Trump's supporters sought to stop Congress from certifying Biden's victory In recent months, people who were close to Trump in the waning days of his presidency — including then-Vice President Mike Pence, lawyer Rudy Giuliani, and then-chief of staff Mark Meadows — were summoned to testify before the grand jurors. The indictment was brought by a prosecutorial team overseen by Special Counsel Jack Smith, who is also leading the team that indicted Trump earlier this year over his possession of government documents after he left the presidency. Trump pleaded not guilty to those charges. Trump separately pleaded not guilty to a 34-count indictment brought earlier this year from the Manhattan district attorney's office related to his hush-money payments to Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 election. Trump is the first former president in US history to be charged with any crime, much less crimes three different indictments. Read the full text of the new indictment here:
Even Elon Musk isn't 'above the rules,' San Francisco mayor reportedly says amid Twitter sign drama 2023-08-01 - San Francisco Mayor London Breed said Elon Musk is not "above the rules," Bloomberg reported. Breed said that Musk's antics at X, formerly Twitter, detracted from other things the city offers. X took down its giant light-up sign on Monday after the city received 24 complaints about it. Morning Brew Insider recommends waking up with, a daily newsletter. Loading Something is loading. Thanks for signing up! Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. download the app Email address By clicking “Sign Up,” you also agree to marketing emails from both Insider and Morning Brew; and you accept Insider’s Terms and Privacy Policy Click here for Morning Brew’s privacy policy. San Francisco Mayor London Breed doesn't appear to be a fan of Elon Musk's recent antics at X, the company formerly known as Twitter. After local police crashed the company's attempt to take down the Twitter sign outside of its headquarters, Breed said even Musk can't dodge the rules. "As for Twitter and what's happening there, I think the challenge we're running into is no one can be above the rules," the mayor last week told Bloomberg. "No one minds that you want to do something different and creative with your space, but you can't just do it like changing your sign, obstructing traffic and not even asking anyone for a permit." At the time, the San Francisco Police Department told Insider that officers responded to "a possible unpermitted street closure" but later determined it not to be a police matter. Then, over the weekend, the social media company replaced the Twitter sign with a massive flashing "X" on the top of its office building, which upset some of X's neighbors. The same X sign was taken down on Monday after the Department of Building Inspection served X a Notice of Violation for working without a permit and for the building being unsafe. The city of San Francisco received 24 complaints about the light-up sign, including that the sign was "poorly constructed" and disturbed nearby residents, CNN reported. And the Department of Building Inspection said it was denied access to X's roof multiple times. Breed told Bloomberg that X is drawing attention away from the other things the city has to offer. "Twitter, now X, represents one thing in San Francisco, but we have so many other incredible companies and so many other important parts of our city that hardly get any attention," Breed's office said in a statement Monday to the news outlet. The city "will continue to stay engaged with the property owner of the building to ensure they follow the city's process for timely notifications, permit requests, and other procedural matters," she added. Musk has been critical of San Francisco in the past, but said on Monday that it was "important for more people to come to work in San Francisco or the rest of the city can't survive." The X sign is one of many issues Musk is facing in San Francisco. The company has been sued over allegations it has not paid rent at the San Francisco building, as well as had several lawsuits filed against it by former employees. Spokespeople for Breed, Musk, and X did not respond to a request for comment ahead of publication.
Trump's 3rd indictment just dropped. This time DOJ's Jack Smith is charging him for trying to overturn the 2020 election. 2023-08-01 - Donald Trump has been indicted as part of the Department of Justice's investigation into the events leading up to the January 6 Capitol riot. The riot was the culmination of efforts by Trump's supporters to block the certification of Biden's election. This is Trump's third indictment in less than five months. Get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in business, from Wall Street to Silicon Valley — delivered daily. Loading Something is loading. Thanks for signing up! Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. download the app Email address By clicking ‘Sign up’, you agree to receive marketing emails from Insider as well as other partner offers and accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy Former President Donald Trump has been indicted once again by a federal grand jury, this time over his efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election and the events leading up to the January 6 Capital riot. It is the third indictment for the ex-president this year and yet another unprecedented legal obstacle for the Republican frontrunner in the 2024 presidential race. Federal prosecutors allege Trump broke federal laws by engaging in a conspiracy to defraud the government and obstructing an official proceeding by plotting to block Congress from certifying the electoral victory of now-President Joe Biden. The Justice Department, in a team led by Special Counsel Jack Smith, brought the charges. Trump announced last month that Smith's team had served him a letter identifying him as a target in the investigation. Earlier on Tuesday, he said the indictment was forthcoming and said Smith was attempting "to interfere with the Presidential Election of 2024." Smith's team is also overseeing a separate prosecution, based in Florida, for a 37-count indictment alleging Trump illegally spirited away government documents from the White House after he left the presidency. Prosecutors say Trump held on to classified documents and, with his co-defendant Walt Nauta, a personal assistant, conspired to obstruct justice and lied to law enforcement. In March, the Manhattan district attorney's office brought a 34-count indictment against Trump, alleging he falsified business records to disguise hush-money payments made to Stormy Daniels to keep her quiet ahead of the 2016 election about an affair she says she had with him. Trump pleaded not guilty in both of the previous criminal cases. What the Justice Department investigated In December, the House of Representatives committee investigating the Capitol riot recommended that the Justice Department bring four criminal charges against Trump: conspiracy to defraud the US, conspiracy to make false statements, obstruction of an official proceeding, and inciting an insurrection. The recommendation doesn't bind prosecutors, but the voluminous evidence and under-oath interviews collected by the committee offer insight into what prosecutors may have focused on. Special Counsel Jack Smith speaks to the press at the US Department of Justice in Washington, DC. MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images For months, prosecutors have brought Trump's associates to testify before a grand jury in Washington, DC, including former Vice President Mike Pence, Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani, and former chief of staff Mark Meadows. Throughout their investigation, the DOJ has zeroed in on the meetings that Trump had with politicians between December 2020 and January 2021, as he repeatedly and falsely claimed that he had won the election, according to The Washington Post. His actions as the riot broke out were also being investigated. The investigation has also probed how much Trump's lawyers coordinated efforts by Republican state electors who tried to confirm Trump as the election winner. Trump's lawyers at the time, John Eastman and Giuliani, are also being probed for their individual roles, the Post reported. Outside of this case, DOJ prosecutors have brought more than 1,000 charges against rioters who ransacked the capitol and combed the halls for politicians, according to NPR. What's next in the January 6 investigation In a Truth Social post on Tuesday, Trump claimed he had four days to appear before a Grand Jury. The target letter he referenced on Tuesday signified that the investigation was wrapping up. At an arraignment in court, the former president will enter a plea when presented with the charges. Prosecutors are likely to try the case in Washington, DC, the site of the grand jury. The bulk of the hundreds of criminal cases against the January 6 rioters are being tried in the district. Donald Trump. Win McNamee/Getty Images As in other cases, Trump's legal team will likely try to delay a potential trial until after the 2024 election. Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis empaneled a grand jury this month in Atlanta that is expected to bring charges against Trump as well, for trying to overturn the election results in George. Her investigation also focuses on "fake electors" who tried to award Georgia's electoral votes to Trump even though Biden won the state. This month, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel brought criminal charges against Republican "fake electors" in the state for a similar plot. Trump has a number of other legal headaches to deal with, including upcoming trials in New York over his business dealings and his endorsement of a multi-level marketing scheme, another rape and defamation trial from E. Jean Carroll, and several other lawsuits and investigations.
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 deal: Up to $900 off, plus $50 instant credit and more savings 2023-08-01 - When you buy through our links, Insider may earn an affiliate commission. Learn more. The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 is a pricey investment, but it's looking like a worthy upgrade if you're a fan of this form factor. There are plenty of ways to save if you're coming from the previous model, with Samsung offering up to $900 trade-in credit when trading in previous-generation devices like the Galaxy Z Flip 4, Z Fold 4, and S23 Ultra. Students and teachers can take another 10% off the total cost (a $100 value), making the device free if you get the highest trade-in value. Even if you're trading in an older model or a different phone, you can save hundreds on your purchase, plus another $50 off instantly when purchasing through our exclusive link. Samsung may suggest you apply the credit to additional accessories, but that's completely optional and totally your prerogative — the discount will apply to the phone if you buy nothing else. This is one of the best Galaxy Z Flip 5 deals you'll find ahead of the August 11 release date. You could upgrade to the Galaxy Z Flip 5 for free Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 The Galaxy Z Flip 5 offers big upgrades, and we mean that literally. There's now a 3.2-inch cover screen that gives you more room for apps, info, and selfie previews. It also has a faster Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chipset and a stronger hinge. The Z Flip 5 is bigger and thinner, all at once The outer Flex Window on the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 is the main attraction this year. Samsung has expanded it to a generous 3.4 inches, enabling more robust app widgets, improved gestures, deeper cosmetic customization, access to quick settings, and more detail for selfie previews if you prefer to use the higher quality offered by the main camera. Speaking of which, for photography, you should make out well with the 12MP wide main camera, a sensor with Dual Pixel AF, OIS, and f/1.8 aperture. There's a second 12MP ultrawide camera for capturing stunning vistas, group shots, and other quirky needs. You also have a 10MP interior selfie camera at your disposal, which you can use for both snapping photos and taking video calls. Under the hood, the Z Flip 5 is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chipset, a newer and moderately faster processor than its predecessor, and one that should put the phone's performance on par with any of the best Android phones. The Z Flip 5 also boasts an improved Flex Hinge that can take more of a beating while minimizing space between the gap while the phone is closed. It's equipped with a 3,700mAh battery that supports fast charging with a 25W charger (not included), 15W wireless charging, and Wireless PowerShare. The Galaxy Z Flip 5 starts at $999.99 for 256GB of storage, but there's also a 512GB variant that you can upgrade to for free if you pre-order. Between that, trade-in savings, and the $50 instant credit you can score today, there aren't many cheaper routes to a brand-new foldable. Hit the link below to order yours in more than half a dozen attractive shades.
The Biden administration is giving entrepreneurs a chance at loans up to $5 million to help launch and grow businesses 2023-08-01 - The Small Business Administration announced new efforts to assist entrepreneurs in getting loans. This includes simplifying loan requirements and expanding nonbank lenders that can issue SBA loans. These efforts are meant to close capital access gaps for minority and rural small business owners. Get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in business, from Wall Street to Silicon Valley — delivered daily. Loading Something is loading. Thanks for signing up! Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. download the app Email address By clicking ‘Sign up’, you agree to receive marketing emails from Insider as well as other partner offers and accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy The Biden Administration is making it simpler for many small business owners to get the loans they need to start and grow their businesses. As part of a series of changes, the Small Business Administration is simplifying loan requirements, making it easier for financial-technology firms to participate. The SBA is also increasing the scope of nonbank lenders that are licensed to issue SBA loans. Many of these changes went into effect August 1 and were launched to assist small businesses that have had difficulty securing funding, given many banks have focused more on larger commercial borrowers. "Capital is the catalyst to starting and growing small businesses. The changes Administrator Guzman is making to SBA small business loan programs are critical to addressing persistent capital access gaps, particularly for rural and minority-owned small businesses," Han Nguyen, SBA spokesman, said in a statement to Insider. "By leveling the playing field and fostering inclusive opportunities through these actions, we are paving the way for diverse and dynamic small businesses and innovative startups to grow, creating a stronger and more resilient economy for all." SBA loans, typically made by banks and other financial institutions, help entrepreneurs start and grow their small businesses. Entrepreneurs can borrow up to $5 million in SBA-backed loans. According to the SBA's 2023 budget request, the agency helped back $34 billion in loans in 2021. The SBA typically promises to cover between 75% to 85% of loan principals, making the loans less risky and more appealing for lenders. As part of the new lending criteria, the SBA will: Allow lenders to make SBA loan decisions according to their existing practices for non-SBA loans, such as using credit scores, revenues, and equity to approve or deny loan applications. Reduce the cost and complexity of smaller loans by providing more flexibility. Removing cumbersome paperwork for lenders. "These changes will expand the number of creditworthy business owners who can access SBA loans, including among women, minority entrepreneurs, employees purchasing a portion of a business from its owner(s), and startup small businesses," the SBA said in a statement. The new standards will simplify SBA regulations and clarify how the SBA defines "affiliation," a term that has led to confusion over who qualifies for loans, by examining who owns the business. As part of this, the SBA will include additional protections so that loans are made only to small businesses, as well as remove some rules that have been considered burdensome for applicants. The new SBA rules allow lenders to make loans of up to $500,000 through their own standard credit policies, with the SBA taking over prescreening tasks including fraud checks, according to The Wall Street Journal. As part of this lender expansion, the SBA said it will enroll new nonprofit lenders through a new Community Advantage Small Business Lending Company license. In 2021 and 2022, 10.5 million people applied to start a new business, according to the SBA. However, certain demographics across the US have struggled to obtain affordable loans. As a result of bank branch closures, the SBA said there are over 1,600 banking deserts in rural areas. Fewer very small businesses have recently gotten loans, while startups have historically been viewed as risky by banks. Additionally, Black- and Hispanic-owned small businesses have a harder time securing credit than white-owned small businesses. Only a small number of banks and credit unions make most SBA loans — half last year were made by just 20 lenders. Some changes have drawn criticism from some industry leaders and politicians for potentially increasing loan defaults, given an uptick in lenders could lead more small-business owners to receive loans they can't afford to repay. Three nonbank lenders will be licensed to make SBA loans above $350,000, which some industry experts believe could make riskier loans. The SBA has said the three additional lenders will be "regulated, supervised, and examined by SBA in accordance with the same oversight standards applied to today's successful and responsible" lenders. Small-business owners also may have to pay more for loans, the Wall Street Journal reported. The SBA now allows lenders to charge a flat fee of $2,500 on loans up to $50,000, higher than the previous cap of 3% on loans of that size. This number rises to a maximum of $7,500 on a $150,000 loan, a jump from a $3,000 upper limit. Still, the SBA said the new lending changes will have a significant effect on demographics that have historically struggled to secure loans, closing growing capital gaps and giving entrepreneurs more options.
Invasive fruit flies have forced a 79-square-mile area of LA under quarantine. Residents are advised to not move any fruits or vegetables from their property. 2023-08-01 - A fruit fly invasion has led to the quarantine of a 79-square-mile region of Los Angeles County. Residents are free to come and go under the quarantine, but their produce is not. This is the first time the fly's invasion has resulted in a quarantine in the Western Hemisphere. Get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in business, from Wall Street to Silicon Valley — delivered daily. Loading Something is loading. Thanks for signing up! Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. download the app Email address By clicking ‘Sign up’, you agree to receive marketing emails from Insider as well as other partner offers and accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy A 79-square-mile area of Los Angeles County has been placed under quarantine after more than 20 invasive fruit flies were found. But this isn't a quarantine for people, like the COVID restrictions we're all used to — it's a quarantine of fruits and vegetables only. The California Department of Food and Agriculture announced in a press release last week that it detected more than 20 invasive Tau fruit flies, which are native to Asia, in Stevenson Ranch, an unincorporated area near Santa Clarita. The fly has been spotted in California three times since it was first detected in 2016, but was successfully eradicated each time, the CDFA says on its website. This is the first time the fly's invasion has resulted in a quarantine in the Western Hemisphere, according to the CDFA. To prevent the flies from spreading, people living in the quarantined area cannot take any fruits or vegetables off their property, the agency advised. People are advised not to remove any produce from their property to avoid spreading the invasive Tau fruit fly. John Coletti / Getty Images The produce, however, "may be consumed or processed (i.e. juiced, frozen, cooked, or ground in the garbage disposal) at the property where they were picked," the CDFA said in the press release. "Otherwise, they should be disposed of by double-bagging in plastic and placing the bags in a bin specifically for garbage." But, residents might want to think twice before plucking an apple off a tree and biting into it — there could be larvae living inside. The CDFA explains on its website that the "adult female lays eggs in host fruit and the larvae tunnel through and feed in this fruit." The CDFA says the fly is also a "serious" pest for agriculture and natural resources. It can infect an extensive list of produce, including melon, peppers, papayas, citrus, and cucumber.
Airbnb removed 3 rental vans parked in New York City after neighbors complained of feces and urine outside 2023-08-01 - Airbnb removed listings for three vans in NYC's Upper East Side neighborhood after complaints. Each listing featured a mattress, sink, and toilet that guests were encouraged not to use. Although Airbnb removed the listings, two of the vans appear to be listed on Tripadvisor. Get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in business, from Wall Street to Silicon Valley — delivered daily. Loading Something is loading. Thanks for signing up! Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. download the app Email address By clicking ‘Sign up’, you agree to receive marketing emails from Insider as well as other partner offers and accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy Earlier this year, if Airbnb users zoomed into New York City's Upper East Side neighborhood, they could spot three unusual listings. The listings weren't for luxe lofts or ritzy apartments in one of NYC's most expensive neighborhoods — they were for vans. Starting at $96 a night, guests could rent the "lovely rv place," the "NYC Van Experience," or "The NYC RV," the New York Daily News first reported on July 25. Reviews for the listings on Airbnbs had gone back to February, according to the outlet. Inside each van, guests could find a mattress, a small sink, and a toilet with a sign reading, "For Emergency USE only please! Please avoid doing #2 here!," the Daily News' Ellen Moynihan reported. After complaints from neighborhood residents and an investigation by the Daily News, the listings were removed from Airbnb's platform in July — but as of Tuesday, two of the vans appear to be listed on Tripadvisor. Images of a van available to rent in New York City on Tripadvisor. Tripadvisor Locals complained that van guests would use the streets as their bathroom The vans frequently moved around public parking spots within the neighborhood, the Daily News reported. The outlet noted that since the vehicles lacked a traditional bathroom and shower, the host required guests to use a bathroom located in a nearby apartment; in the now-deleted listings, the host told guests they could shower at her home and "just text" before they needed to use it, according to the Daily News. But local residents told the Daily News they saw Airbnb guests using the streets as their restroom. "Where are they going to do it?" a building super, who asked that his name not be used, told the outlet. "They don't care. They go between the cars or on the building stairs across the street." A resident named Stacey told the Daily News that she didn't spot the vans until she noticed "the smell of urine and feces." In the listings on Airbnb, the host stated that anything less than a five-star review was considered a negative review, according to the Daily News. However, that didn't stop Airbnb guests from leaving less-than-positive reviews. According to a review on the vacation-rental platform seen by the Daily News, one guest named Virgile thought the van they stayed in was too expensive. "Just have in mind *it's a mattress in a van in the street*. No restroom (a toilet you cannot use) and it was complicated to come take a shower to the host place," they wrote in the review, according to the Daily News. Airbnb removed the listings in July According to the Daily News, the Airbnb host was Magdalena Kulisz, who went by the name Magda Agata on the platform. Kulisz, the cofounder of the networking group Miss Immigrant USA, told the Daily News that the vans were legally registered with the state, and in the now-deleted listings for the vans, Kulisz wrote that each was "legally parked and insured." Kulisz declined to comment when contacted by Insider for this story. In January 2022, New York City adopted a law that requires hosts to register their Airbnb and short-term properties with the Mayor's Office of Special Enforcement. However, the deadline to register those short-term rentals is September 5 of this year, according to the Office of Special Enforcement's website. A representative for the office did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment. Kulisz told the Daily News that she was under the impression she didn't need to do that. "I'm not an attorney but it's not an apartment so I don't think I need to register it with the city," she told the news outlet. A spokesperson for Airbnb told Insider that the vans violated the vacation-rental company's policy, which doesn't permit hosts to have listings on public land. "Following an investigation, these listings have been removed from the platform," the Airbnb spokesperson said. Two of the vans appear to still be listed on Tripadvisor While Airbnb removed postings for the vans from its platform, two listings that appear to feature the same vans were still active on Tripadvisor as of Tuesday under a host named Sha K. When Insider reached Miss Immigrant USA to ask for comment from Magdalena Kulisz, she responded along with Sha Kenan, who is also a cofounder of the organization. Kenan declined to comment when contacted by Insider, and representatives for Tripadvisor did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment. In the Tripadvisor listings, which were viewed by Insider, the host wrote that they "had happy guests staying for more then a month, weeks or just over night." As of Tuesday, the listing for the "NYC Cozy Van Camper Experience" had two one-star reviews (which you can see below), while the other for "Van Experience NYC" didn't have any. Two negative reviews of a van rental posted on Tripadvisor. Tripadvisor One reviewer of the "NYC Cozy Van Camper Experience" said it was "an uncomfortable experience with countless inconveniences," and wrote that they had trouble finding a time that worked with the host to use the apartment bathroom that had been offered in the listing. (As with the now-removed listings for the vans on Airbnb, the Tripadvisor host says in the listing that guests "are welcome to have shower in our home a block away.") "We were also told not to use the toilet in the van too much which was ridiculous," the reviewer who goes by Culture62288004542 on Tripadvisor wrote. "Basically, there were some days when we could not shower at all," they added, saying they had "to use public restrooms whenever we could." Another guest gave the listing one star, writing: "This 'van experience' is not a fun experience."
Amazon employees leak secret info that marketplace sellers can buy on Telegram 2023-08-01 - In this article AMZN Follow your favorite stocks CREATE FREE ACCOUNT Workers fulfill orders at an Amazon fulfillment center on Prime Day in Melville, New York, US, on Tuesday, July 11, 2023. Johnny Milano | Bloomberg | Getty Images For the millions of sellers who make up the booming Amazon marketplace, few things are as perpetually concerning as the threat of getting suspended for alleged wrongdoing and watching business evaporate overnight. Helping third-party sellers recover their accounts has turned into a large and lucrative enterprise, because the only way the merchants can get back up and running is to admit guilt and correct the issue or show sufficient evidence that they did nothing wrong. The process is often costly, lengthy and fraught with challenges. Enter the illicit broker. For a fee of $200 to $400, sellers can pay for services such as "Amazon Magic," as one broker on encrypted messaging service Telegram calls it. The offerings also include access to company insiders who can remove negative reviews on a product and provide information on competitors. Users are told to send a private message to learn the price of certain services. The Telegram group has over 13,000 members, and it's far from the only one. Other brokers peddle similar services on Telegram as well as on WeChat, WhatsApp and Facebook Groups. The confidential data is promoted as intelligence gold for any seller working to get their product or account reinstated. The groups are part of a robust market of so-called black hat service providers that have cropped up alongside the rise of third-party marketplaces on Amazon, Etsy and Walmart . Amazon's marketplace now accounts for over 60% of goods sold on the platform, and includes numerous businesses that generate millions of dollars in annual revenue on the site. Zoom In Icon Arrows pointing outwards Source: Telegram Zoom In Icon Arrows pointing outwards Source: Telegram As it's grown, the sprawling global marketplace has also seen a surge in the number of counterfeiters and spammers trying to game the system, which has pushed Amazon to ramp up enforcement. Much of the activity originates off Amazon's marketplace and on social media and encrypted messaging apps, complicating the policing efforts. A public Facebook page identified by CNBC offers an internal screenshot service with "valuable insight into your seller account, allowing you to see how Amazon employees view your account and its performance." Facebook parent Meta didn't respond to a request for comment. The issue of rogue employees taking bribes is not a new one for Amazon. The company has in the past dealt with low-level, low-wage seller support staffers in China, India and Costa Rica who have accepted payments in exchange for leaking information. Brokers, who act as middlemen between sellers and employees, often reach out to insiders on LinkedIn, said a person familiar with the matter who asked not to be named due to confidentiality. Amazon has an internal group tasked with threat analysis and response, including a team dedicated to investigating employees suspected of leaking data, the source said. The threat analysis unit monitors social media platforms for abusive groups where bad actors may congregate before engaging in illicit activity on Amazon's marketplace. Amazon told CNBC that it has systems in place to detect suspicious behavior such as improper access to confidential data and investigates these activities, sharing information with law enforcement agencies. It reports abusive groups to social media platforms and encrypted messaging services, where bad actors are increasingly concentrating their activities in order to avoid detection, the company said. "There is no place for fraud at Amazon and we will continue to pursue all measures to protect our store and hold bad actors accountable," Christy Distefano, an Amazon spokesperson, said in an email. Amazon declined to say whether it has disciplined or fired employees for leaking data in exchange for payments, beyond noting that it has zero tolerance for staffers who violate its policies. Amazon's ongoing bribery problem In 2018, Amazon investigated claims that employees, primarily based in China, received payments of $80 to more than $2,000 to share confidential sales information or delete bad reviews, The Wall Street Journal reported. More recently, the Department of Justice charged six individuals in 2020 with participating in a scheme to bribe employees and contractors for internal data. In July, the fifth defendant in the case, who is a well-known seller consultant, was sentenced to probation and house arrest after pleading guilty in March. Account annotations, internal notes from an Amazon staffer on a seller's account, were among the confidential data being exchanged between the defendants and employees. Amazon said it uncovered the suspicious behavior related to the bribery case in 2018 and reported it to the FBI. The company said it had "robust systems" in place to detect suspicious behavior such as fraud and abuse. Amazon has also urged social media companies to assist it with rooting out fraudulent activity such as fake reviews. While Amazon is aware of the problem and is investing in people and technology to weed it out, groups continue to proliferate into the hundreds, the person with knowledge of the issue told CNBC. Accessing groups on encrypted chat apps such as Telegram, WeChat or WhatsApp may require a link or invitation. Remi Vaughn, a spokesperson for Telegram, told CNBC in an email that "moderators proactively monitor public parts of the platform and accept user reports in order to remove content that breaches our terms of service." The Amazon Magic group on Telegram is public, with users advertising black hat services almost daily. Screenshots of Amazon's internal Paragon system, which is used by seller support employees to handle cases, are distributed freely in the group. CNBC authenticated the legitimacy of the screenshots with sources knowledgeable of the system. "Much more you can find about your account by ordering screenshots with inside information from us, as seller support sees it," a message in the Telegram chat states. Many of the messages in the group are in Russian, and a user who runs the group claims on Facebook to be based in Ukraine. The person didn't respond to a request for comment. watch now
Meta starts blocking news in Canada over law on paying publishers 2023-08-01 - Morning commute traffic streams past the Meta sign outside the headquarters of Facebook parent company Meta Platforms Inc in Mountain View, California, U.S. November 9, 2022. REUTERS/Peter DaSilva/File Photo OTTAWA, Aug 1 (Reuters) - Meta Platforms (META.O) has begun the process to end access to news on Facebook and Instagram for all users in Canada, it said on Tuesday, in response to law requiring internet giants to pay news publishers. The Canadian government quickly denounced the move as "irresponsible," and said the world is watching the process play out in Canada. The Online News Act, passed by the Canadian parliament, would force platforms like Google parent Alphabet (GOOGL.O) and Meta to negotiate commercial deals with Canadian news publishers for their content. "News outlets voluntarily share content on Facebook and Instagram to expand their audiences and help their bottom line," Rachel Curran, Meta's head of public policy in Canada, said. "In contrast, we know the people using our platforms don't come to us for news." Canadian Heritage Minister Pascale St-Onge, who is in charge of the government's dealings with Meta, said in a Tuesday statement: "This is irresponsible." "They would rather block their users from accessing good quality and local news instead of paying their fair share to news organizations," St-Onge said. "We’re going to keep standing our ground. After all, if the Government can’t stand up for Canadians against tech giants, who will?” she added. In a campaign against the law, which is part of a broader global trend to make tech firms pay for news, both Meta and Google said in June they would block access to news on their platforms in the country. Canada's public broadcast CBC also called Meta's move irresponsible and that it was "an abuse of their market power." The Canadian law is similar to a ground-breaking law that Australia passed in 2021 and had triggered threats from Google and Facebook to curtail their services. Both the companies eventually struck deals with Australian media firms after amendments to the legislation were offered. But on the Canadian law, Google has argued that it is broader than those enacted in Australia and Europe as it puts a price on news story links displayed in search results and can apply to outlets that do not produce news. Meta had said links to news articles make up less than 3% of the content on its users' feed and argued that news lacked economic value. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had said in May that such an argument was flawed and "dangerous to our democracy, to our economy." Reporting by Chavi Mehta in Bengaluru and David Ljunggren and Ismail Shakil in Ottawa; Editing by Arun Koyyur and Aurora Ellis Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
Barbie Hoax Targets Mattel and Fools Some News Outlets 2023-08-01 - Several news organizations fell for an elaborate hoax on Tuesday that claimed that all Mattel toys, including the iconic Barbie doll, would be plastic free by 2030, starting with a new line of decomposable “EcoWarrior” dolls made with organic materials including mushrooms, algae and clay. The campaign, carried out by an activist group that calls itself the Barbie Liberation Organization, included a series of false news releases and advertisements purporting to be from the toy giant Mattel. The group said it wanted to capitalize on the hype that has surrounded the blockbuster “Barbie” film, released last month, and call attention to the use of plastic in toys. In one of the clips, the actor and environmental activist Daryl Hannah strolls along a picturesque beach, where she plucks a barnacle-encrusted doll from the sand.
Fitch Downgrades U.S. Credit Rating 2023-08-01 - The long-term credit rating of the United States was downgraded on Tuesday by the Fitch Ratings agency, which said the nation’s high and growing debt burden and penchant for brinkmanship over America’s authority to borrow money had eroded confidence in its fiscal management. Fitch lowered the U.S. long-term rating to AA+ from its top mark of AAA. The downgrade — the second in America’s history — came two months after the United States narrowly avoided defaulting on its debt. Lawmakers spent weeks negotiating over whether the United States, which ran up against a cap on its ability to borrow money on Jan. 19, should be allowed to take on more debt to pay its bills. The standoff threatened to tip the United States into default until Congress reached a last-minute agreement in May to suspend the nation’s debt ceiling, which allowed the United States to keep borrowing money. Despite that agreement, the federal government now faces the prospect of a shutdown this fall, as lawmakers spar over how, where and what level of federal funds should be spent. The nonstop dueling over federal spending was a major factor in Fitch’s decision to downgrade America’s debt. “The repeated debt-limit political standoffs and last-minute resolutions have eroded confidence in fiscal management,” Fitch said in a statement. “In addition, the government lacks a medium-term fiscal framework, unlike most peers, and has a complex budgeting process.”
Vindication or cowardice? Andy Burnham’s clean air gamble in Manchester 2023-08-01 - Vindicated. That is how Andy Burnham felt in the aftermath of the Uxbridge byelection, when Labour’s narrow defeat was blamed on the determination of his London counterpart to extend the capital’s ultra-low emission zone (Ulez). Burnham, the mayor of Greater Manchester, had pressed “pause” in February 2022 on the introduction of a clean air zone (Caz) after initially supporting it, then changing his mind. Around 1,300 Caz signs had already been erected, along with enforcement cameras, for the zone which was due to be introduced on 30 May last year. It would have seen non-compliant vans, taxis, buses and lorries all paying between £7.50 and £60 a day to drive around the city region, all 1,277km (493 sq mi) of it. But Burnham halted its introduction, saying it was inherently unfair after issues caused by the pandemic. His London counterpart, Sadiq Khan, bolstered by a high court ruling last week, has however vowed to weather the post-Uxbridge storms and push ahead with the Ulez extension at the end of August because “it is the right thing to do”. Burnham has at the same time been locked in a battle with government, arguing a non-charging zone is the way forward. Some see it as Burnham “reading the room” while Khan sticks to his original decision, which may have cost Labour votes in the byelection. Others see it as political cowardice, putting personal popularity ratings above the human right to breathe clean air. It means Greater Manchester, home to 2.8 million people, is the only city region in England legally mandated by government to clean up its air that has not bitten the bullet and begun charging the most polluting vehicles. Burnham won re-election in 2021 with 67% of the vote on a manifesto which included introducing the Caz, but by the end of that year, increasingly fierce opposition was building. Burnham was being harangued on his weekly Radio Manchester phone-in, and there were growing protests, including one when farmers boarded a bus with a sheep and a shetland pony. More than 80,000 people joined a Facebook group called Rethink the Clean Air Zone. Conspiracy theories flourished, including one that wrongly suggested Burnham’s wife was profiting from the initiative. Announcing the pause, Burnham said he had decided the charging zone was inherently unfair at a time of significant vehicle supply chain issues, rising vehicle prices and a cost-of-living crisis. It was “not morally defensible” and a “pre-pandemic solution for a post-pandemic world”, he said. Motoring groups welcomed the pause, including the Road Haulage Association, which said it supported “effective, proportionate and fair clean air measures that make upgrading to cleaner vehicles easier”. Burnham is now a proponent of what he has called the “carrot” method, demanding around £130m of compensation from central government to help drivers scrap and replace their old vehicles. That, he has insisted, will do more to clear up Greater Manchester’s filthy air than the “stick” of penalising anyone. Burnham has talked about an “investment-led clean air plan”, and has asked for more money for the Bee Network, a “London-style” public transport and walking and cycling network that should offer more residents viable alternatives to driving by January 2025. The contrast in public transport between Burnham and Khan’s realms are stark. Khan chairs Transport for London, which operates the buses and underground and overground trains which serve each of the city’s 32 boroughs. A Manchester clean air zone automatic number plate recognition camera (ANPR) pictured in January 2022. Photograph: Christopher Furlong/Getty Images In Greater Manchester, three out of 10 boroughs do not have any Metrolink tram stops, and some places – such as Burnham’s old Leigh constituency in Wigan – do not have train stations. Burnham hopes buses will improve when he takes charge of the network on 24 September after Greater Manchester becomes the first area outside London to bring buses under local control in almost 40 years. skip past newsletter promotion Sign up to First Edition Free daily newsletter Archie Bland and Nimo Omer take you through the top stories and what they mean, free every weekday morning Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy . We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. after newsletter promotion While Burnham argues with the government, roads in all 10 Greater Manchester boroughs continue to break legal limits for air quality. Liz Godfrey, the Manchester coordinator for Mums For Lungs, called the continued delay “bitterly disappointing” and accused Burnham of “lacking ambition”. “If anybody is in a position to do something bold, it’s him, with his mandate,” she said. Godfrey said she is currently working with a school in Longsight, a south Manchester suburb, where 40% of children have asthma. Pete Abel from Manchester Friends of the Earth said: “Air pollution causes the premature deaths of over 1,000 people in Greater Manchester each year, and the region has one of the highest rates in the country for emergency hospital admissions of children with asthma and other respiratory infections.” A smaller charging zone in Manchester city centre for all vehicle types that do not meet air pollution standards is essential, Abel added. By October 2022, the Caz had cost over £62m. The service contract has so far cost £18.4m and £120,000 has been spent on 1,309 “Under review” stickers to paste on the dormant signs. Eamonn O’Brien, the leader of Bury council and holder of the clean air brief, insisted it was not “fantasy politics” to ask the government for £130m while trying not to charge any members of the public. He called on the government to be honest: if the £130m is contingent on Greater Manchester introducing a charging zone, it should say so, and own that decision, he said: “What they can’t do is have it both ways and say these [charging zones] are terrible for car drivers and horrible things that socialists do, and then withhold the money to try and do the alternative. “I personally don’t think it’s a fantasy. This is actually common sense and a moderate way of going about doing the right thing.”
Surprise US credit rating downgrade draws White House ire 2023-08-01 - Rating agency Fitch downgraded the US government’s top credit rating on Tuesday, a move that drew an angry response from the White House and surprised investors. Fitch downgraded the United States to AA+ from AAA, citing fiscal deterioration over the next three years and repeated down-the-wire debt ceiling negotiations that threaten the government’s ability to pay its bills. It is the second major rating agency after Standard & Poor’s to strip the US of its triple-A rating. Fitch had first flagged the possibility of a downgrade in May amid the US debt ceiling negotiations, then maintained that position in June after the crisis was resolved, saying it intended to resolve the review in the third quarter of this year. After the announcement, the dollar fell across a range of currencies, stock futures ticked down and Treasury futures rose. But several investors and analysts said they expected the impact of the downgrade to be limited. The move came despite the resolution of the US debt ceiling crisis two months ago. Joe Biden and the Republican-controlled House of Representatives reached a debt ceiling agreement in May following months of political brinkmanship. The deal lifted the government’s $31.4tn borrowing limit. “In Fitch’s view, there has been a steady deterioration in standards of governance over the last 20 years, including on fiscal and debt matters, notwithstanding the June bipartisan agreement to suspend the debt limit until January 2025,” the rating agency said in a statement. “The repeated debt limit political standoffs and last-minute resolutions have eroded confidence in fiscal management,” it said. Janet Yellen, the US Treasury secretary, said she disagreed with Fitch’s downgrade, in a statement that called it “arbitrary and based on outdated data”. The White House had a similar view, saying it “strongly disagrees with this decision“. “It defies reality to downgrade the United States at a moment when President Biden has delivered the strongest recovery of any major economy in the world,” said Karine Jean-Pierre, the White House press secretary. Investors use credit ratings to assess the risk profile of companies and governments when they raise financing in the debt capital markets. Generally, the lower a borrower’s rating, the higher its financing costs. “This was unexpected, kind of came from left field,” said Keith Lerner, co-chief investment officer at Truist Advisory Services in Atlanta. “As far as the market impact, it’s uncertain right now. The market is at a point where it’s somewhat vulnerable to bad news.” Treasury 10-year futures rose slightly, indicating a lower yield, while the dollar moved lower against a basket of major currencies after the announcement. US stock index futures had yet to resume trading. In a previous debt ceiling crisis in 2011, Standard & Poor’s cut the US top ‘AAA’ rating by one notch a few days after a debt ceiling deal, citing political polarization and insufficient steps to right the nation’s fiscal outlook. Its rating is still ‘A-plus’ – its second highest. After that downgrade, US stocks tumbled and the impact of the rating cut was felt across global stock markets, which were at the time already in the throes of a financial meltdown in the euro zone. Paradoxically, US Treasury prices rose because of a flight to quality from equities. Raymond James analyst Ed Mills said on Tuesday he did not anticipate markets to react significantly to the news. “My understanding has been that after the S&P downgrade a lot of these contracts were reworked to say triple-A or ‘government-guaranteed’, and so the government guarantee is more important than the Fitch rating,” he said. Others echoed similar views. “Overall, this announcement is much more likely to be dismissed than have a lasting disruptive impact on the US economy and markets,” Mohamed El-Erian, the president at Queens’ College, said in a LinkedIn post.